


Curious Minds

by DarkJediQueen



Series: Here There Be Dragons [13]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV), James Bond (Craig movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Dragons, Fantasy, M/M, magic is known
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-03-31 00:16:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19038469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkJediQueen/pseuds/DarkJediQueen
Summary: Curious about there new teachers at Jack, Bri, and Henry's school, Reed goes on a hunt.





	Curious Minds

**Author's Note:**

> **Year** : Late January 2010  
>  **Spoilers** : Up Through Season 5  
>  **Notes** : None  
>  **Beta** : rivermoon1970

Reed noticed the new smell on the kids when they came back from their first day at school, for Jack it was the first day after the winter break, but for Henry and Bri it was their first day at school at all. The kids had liked it, and Jack adored that he got to spend time with Henry and Bri and none of the parents were around. That had caused a small discussion, but in the end, it had been more about the fact that they were so used to be being watched all the time. Reed knew that Aaron was possessive and a little overbearing when it came to Jack and Jack understood why but he was still a child who wanted to play and not have to worry about what Aaron would do when he inevitably scraped his knee. 

Aaron was doing his best, but Reed knew that at some point it was going to come to a head. Aaron had not wanted kids at all, too much pain the last time that he had one, and then having Jack thrust at him in the worst way possible and then not long after having to share said child with two others and Reed, it was a recipe for disaster. Reed could only hope that it happened at home with just Reed and Jack, maybe Indara around and not the whole team as well as possibly Henry and Bri. Aaron and Reed were better than they had been before. Aaron let Spencer think and talk when he was ready and after that case with the Doll Collector there had been a lot of talking about the issue. 

Reed had talked until he was blue in the face, as the human idiom went, about what he felt when Aaron had been talking to Morgan earlier in the month. Reed had explained what could happen if he allowed his emotions to overwhelm him, what kind of damage he could do and that was why sometimes it felt like he was cutting them all off. It was better than destroying everything in his path and hurting those around him.. Reed felt better after talking it out when he had a hold on his emotions, but there was still Aaron's reluctance when it came to the kids. 

"Reed," Jack called out from where he was playing in the tree in the backyard. "Come play."

Reed huffed and wiggled off of Aaron's lap. Aaron was taking a nap after a grueling case that they had just got home from. When he landed on the ground, Reed changed to the size of a cat and took off at a run toward the tree. He jumped and caught a branch with his front claws before using the momentum of his body to swing himself up further into the tree. 

Aaron had grown the tree from a seedling over the course of several weeks. It was perfect for them to climb in, including Aaron, and best of all there was a treehouse at the top which had been built on the ground and then added to the tree with powerful magic. That had been Reed's contribution. While the kids were small, there were magical ways for them getting up into the tree, and there were spells that stopped them from falling and even jumping out of the tree. Reed, however, was not inhibited in any way. 

Jack was on one of the lower branches that allowed him to see almost the whole tree. He liked watching Reed race around the tree playing. Jack especially loved it when Reed was actually chasing something. No wildlife had started to live in the tree, too scared of him Reed figured. However, Reed could conjure fake birds and small rodents for them to play with. 

The tree was good for Reed because it had helped him keep in shape, of sorts, so that when it was time for him to finally be able to fly again, his whole body wouldn't have atrophied at all. Reed loved the feel of the tree under his claws. It had been nearly a thousand years since he had played in a magical Oak tree. The seed had been well preserved in Aaron's care. Reed hadn't asked if he had one of every kind of magical tree seed in his possession, but Reed wouldn't be shocked if he did. 

Magical trees were rare in the United States anymore, many were cut down for land development. The trees were nothing special really, but they were strong in magic and held magic better than anything else in the world. The spells that kept the tree house up and the kids from falling out would never need to be fixed. The magic was set, and the tree fed the spells itself. On really sunny days, Reed would shrink as small as he could and lounge in the top of the tree, even though it was January. The sun on his scales felt terrific. 

Reed lost track of time as he raced around the tree after the bright green squirrel that he conjured to give himself something fun to do. He lept from branch to branch and spun around to provide Jack with an outstanding show. 

"Time for dinner," Aaron called out. 

Reed popped his head out of the tree and looked down. He hadn't realized that Aaron had got up, or that he had been gone long enough to fix dinner. Reed huffed and crawled back into the tree. Jack was already climbing down, using the little handholds that magic popped up for him to get down quickly. Reed looked down, seeing the path he could jump down to get down to the ground as quick as possible but he didn't want that. Reed backed up all the way to where the branch met the trunk. He wiggled his butt a little to get his blood pumping again and then took off as fast as he could dig his claws in and release. He shot out of the tree and waited for the right second to grab the wind and make it buffer him up to where he landed on the roof of the house. 

"REED!" Aaron yelled, and he sounded scared. 

Reed dug his claws into the shingles that made up the roof and hunkered down. He hadn't meant to upset Aaron or scare him. He missed flying and riding in the jet was not the same. He couldn't feel the wind wrapping around his scales or taste the clouds. Reed finally let go of the shingles and turned to walk down to the gutter. He jumped from there and landed on the edge of the potted plant to look at Aaron. 

"I'm okay," Reed said. 

Aaron reached out and picked him up. When he was lifted up to where he could curl around Aaron's neck, Reed did so. He nosed at the flesh that made up the underside of Aaron's chin. 

"I just...I've not seen you do that and all I could see was you landing wrong and on your wings."

Reed snorted but tried not to make it sound like he was upset. "While I am no cat, unless I am acted upon by outside forces I always land on my feet. I wanted to feel the wind around my scales. What did you make for dinner?"

"I ordered Chinese. I've got the living room set up for us to eat in there and watch a movie. JJ called and said that Bri was already asleep."

"Her magic is growing a little more now that she's actively learning it so she'll sleep more."

"That's what I figured, and that's what I told her, and it seems like Will said the same thing."

"She's just worried. We would do the same if we were human and basically babysitting someone else's magical child. She's unsure of herself. She'll learn more with time. Henry did most of his expanding when he became Immortal."

"Let's eat dinner and cuddle and sleep." Aaron sounded worn out, and Reed nudged up into his chin again. Aaron raised his head so that Reed could rub his head under Aaron's chin like a cat would a human. Reed even started to rumble out a purr. Aaron laughed and raised his hand to scratch under Reed's chin. "The nap was good, but I'm still just so tired."

"I can do food and such tomorrow. It's Sunday, and there are a few places that are close by that allow me to pay with credit card," Reed said. 

"I don't know I think I'd pay to see you run down the street to get food and come back carrying it in your jaw." 

A happy feeling came down the bond and Reed knew that it was just work getting to Aaron added with still adjusting to children. Reed knew that it would take time, but they would come out the end of it stronger.

* * *

New Grove Academy was good at keeping people out, but apparently, they had never tried to keep out a dragon. Or had never tried to keep out a dragon-like Reed. Reed wasn't sure. With two members of the team with concussion and Aaron with a broken arm after their SUV was rammed by the UnSub on their last case, the team had been put on desk duty. Rossi and JJ were both pissed off to be benched, but not as much as Aaron was grumbling about his broken arm. Aaron's magic was healing it slowly but faster than an average human would. Morgan was filling his time when he wasn't working on paperwork at the Academy breaking in potential agents. Prentiss was enjoying not being on the run so much and finding the time to find a brownstone. Reed spent his days doing what he wanted because his work wasn't backlogged like most to the team. 

Reed climbed up the drain pipe that ran down the side of the school. It was a little tricky, but Reed had been sneaking around for a long time. He had learned the skill when he was just a hatchling. Much to the ire of Tria and Serena. Reed was good at it. As he got to the top, he thought about seeing if Morgan would team up with him for one of the games like hide and seek that agents did in some of the fake houses on the training course of the Academy. Reed wondered just who would be able to feel him using their magic and who wouldn't. It could be fun.

The school was empty of kids, but the staff was still there, getting ready for the next day, Reed assumed. He could feel the teachers that he knew, but there were three new ones. Reed cared little and knew that the school vetted everyone who came to teach at the school but there was something off about the new teachers. Jack came home with the feel of the magics of his teachers, and there was something off. Reed wanted to know what it was before he agreed to keep the kids there.

As much as Aaron's magic was natural, Reed's was innate, and he never second-guessed himself when something came up that made his magic feel off. Reed found that the staircase access to the roof was propped open and it smelled like someone had just finished smoking a cigarette. There was something to the smell of it that was familiar to Reed, and it took a long time for him to figure out that it was what that pack of cigarettes that Aaron had stashed in the back of the drawer of his nightstand smelled like. Reed had never seen him smoke them, and the amount that was in there had never gone down, but it made Reed wonder why Aaron had them. 

Creeping down the stairs, Reed found the floor that he needed which was the second from the top. He wasn't sure if his prey was in the same room or each in their rooms, but he would deal with that when the time came. There were only three people on that floor at that moment. The endurance room made up just about half of the level, it was kind of like a gym, but it was for magic use and not for physical training. The fire magic room was at the far corner of the floor opposite where Reed had come in. It was the most warded and protected of the rooms. The room beside it was the technology classroom, and as Reed got close to it, he realized that all of them were in the fire magic room. Reed hunkered down and edged closer to the open door. 

"I don't know what we are supposed to be doing here," one of them said. He didn't sound happy but bored. There was a slight accent to the man's voice, and Spencer wondered where in Russia the man was from originally. 

"M will tell us what we are looking for at some point, I assume. I mean why else would she send two of you to protect me if it's not something that only I can do," another said. That man had a very posh London accent that sent a shiver down Reed's spine. He missed accents like that. 

"I still think that she is getting us out of her hair," the third man said. 

"There is that, but I don't know," the posh-accented man said. 

"What do you think of the two newest and youngest students?" the Russian man asked. 

Reed crept a little further into the room and looked around the trash can. All three of the men were huddled close together. There was a lithe man who was sitting on a table instead of at a chair while the other two were between him the door where Reed was. None of them had noticed him. He crept around the trashcan and kept on going into the room. He wanted to listen. 

"Bri and Henry? They are adorable," London man said. 

"What is up with them and that little Fire Lord?" The Russian asked. 

Reed exhaled and pushed at Aaron because this wasn't good. At least the Russian in the room was an Immortal. Fire Lord was an ancient term for someone like Jack and Reed hadn't heard it used in nearly three hundred years. Reed pushed a bit of urgency into the bond he had with his mate. It wouldn't take long for Aaron to get there as he was home but still, Reed wanted him there as soon as possible. 

"I know that they live close to each other," the third man said. 

"But what else do you know?" the London man asked. 

"The school keeps all names hidden, you know that Q. You can't even find the names of the parents on paper," the Russian said. 

"I've not tried that hard either," the London man said. 

With a hiss, Reed let loose his magic and started to grow. He stopped when he hit the body size of a panther. 

The sound of the safety being taken off of guns wasn't a shock. Reed already knew that they were operatives and given the name M was used, they were MI6. Reed hissed again at them before stepping around the desk that was hiding him. 

"Holy shite," the lithe London man said as he jumped from the table. He looked like he was going to conjure something. Reed puffed smoke that enveloped the two of them. "I think you both owe me a few hundred quid."

Reed huffed, and the man closed his mouth, and the smile fell from his face. The two blond men put up their guns, stuffing them into shoulder holsters. One blond had green eyes and the other ice pale blue ones. Reed stared at them as they stared at him. The lithe one had intelligence in his eyes, and from what Reed could read off of them, all three of them were Immortal.

"Why did MI6 send three Immortals to DC?" Reed questioned. 

"We go where we are told," the blue-eyed man said. 

"And yet I think you question everything." Reed took a step toward the three of them. The lithe man backed up. 

"He has you down, James," the green-eyed man said. 

Reed huffed and took another step. The lithe man and the green-eyed man both backed up but James did not. 

"Which of you is Q?" Reed asked. 

There were no words from any of the three men, but the way that both blond men stepped toward the lithe one told Reed precisely who Q was. 

"The Quartermaster of MI6 and I am assuming two Double-O agents? What are your numbers?"

"We aren't telling you anything, Scales," James said. 

"James, now is not the time to piss off the pet of the Judge of North America," Q whispered, but Reed still heard it. 

Reed growled, air huffing out and it buffeted James back a step. 

"I don't think that he likes being called a pet, do you?" James stepped up to Reed and stood claw to toe with him. 

Reed wasn't sure what to expect but for James to kiss his snout was not it. 

"Though I'm sure that he likes Aaron calling him a pet," James said. 

Reed shoved as he grew bigger, James toppled back and when Reed was as big as he felt safe growing inside. He tipped James down onto his back and laid his clawed limb over him, holding him down. 

"James!" Q yelled and tried to rush forward, but the Russian grabbed him. 

"Q, don't. We can't take on a dragon."

"Alec, he's going to kill him!" Q struggled.

"No, he's not. Hotchner's a good man, and he would never allow his familiar to actually kill anyone."

Reed looked down at James and glared at him. 

"You've dealt with more dragons than I have but-" Q stopped when the loud bang of the door shutting sounded across the room. 

"What's going on?" 

"Oh Gods, now the Judge. I'm so sorry, Lord Hotchner," Q said as Alec let him go. 

Aaron ignored the two men that were in the room and walked right to Reed, looking down at the man that was on the floor. Reed felt the rush of affection and even a little lust across the bond that they shared. It made his claws tighten. James went still instead of the wiggling that he had been doing. 

"JAMES!" Q cried out. 

"You, Sir, are an idiot," Aaron said. 

Reed exhaled smoke, the fire in his gut wanting to free itself. He stepped back and shrunk down. James stayed where he was until Reed had jumped up and wrapped himself around Aaron's neck. 

"What the fuck are you three doing here?" Aaron asked. He stared at James though and waited for the man to get up. James was in the middle of brushing himself off when Aaron grabbed him by the throat and shoved him into the wall. "Why did MI6 send not just two Double-O's but their Quartermaster here?"

"You know that I can't tell you that, Aaron," James said like he was talking normal and wasn't pinned to the wall. 

"Aaron, we-" Alec stopped when Aaron turned to look at him. 

"I thought that MI6 was under control finally!" Aaron demanded from James. 

"M's made sure that the undesirables are gone from the service."

"And yet here you are, and neither Destara or I were told that you were coming. That is not the way that things are done."

Reed was paying more attention to what was in front of him and didn't pay attention to behind until he felt a hand brush him. He acted out of instinct, protecting his wings. Reed snapped his head around and grew to where he fell off of Aaron, keeping his claws in but he sunk his teeth into the hand that had touched him. He had the entire palm in his mouth with fingers sticking out one side and arm the other.

"Bloody buggering hell," Alec yelled and tried to shake. Reed clamped down harder and extended his claws out. He was waiting for Alec to grab at him. 

"Alec, stop!" Q yelled. 

Reed eyed the man he was biting and waited for the man to do something. Alec though didn't move. Q did though. Q walked over to Reed and crouched down to his height. 

"Bloody hell, he's not a familiar is he?" Q asked. 

"No," Aaron said. 

"Can we all just take a step back. Lord Hotchner, if you would release James, I would be delighted and Lord Reed, is it? Let Alec go. I'm not sure that he tastes good." 

Reed waited for Aaron to step back from James. James just rubbed his throat and grinned at Aaron. Reed knew that James was _the_ James, Aaron's friend but the lust that Aaron had felt at the sight of him had Reed feeling a little off. He had never felt that emotion directed anywhere but at him. He knew that he was possessive, it was the nature of dragons, but the jealousy was new. 

Alec and Q smelled like James like they did more than just be around each other and Reed was glad, at least James wouldn't try and seduce Aaron away from him. It didn't stop Reed from clamping down on Alec's hand again in slight anger. Hands wrapped around Alec's arm and lowered it until Reed's hind legs touched the ground. Reed let go and quickly slipped behind Aaron, glaring at the three men. 

Q stepped up to Alec and strips of cloth appeared in Q's hand, and he started to wrap up Alec's hand. It was gentle and loving, and Reed was sure then that at least Q cared for Alec. The possessive reaction that James and Alec had when it seemed like Q was threatened said that they felt something for him as well. 

Aaron was looking at James with a glare in his eyes. "One hour at that park," was all that Aaron said before he turned and lowered his hand. Reed climbed up his arm, shrinking to the size of a small cat as he did. Aaron was very upset, and Reed knew that it wasn't at him, it was at the three men who were part of MI6. Reed wondered how in the hell three members of the British Secret Intelligence Service had got that close to them without them knowing. Reed wanted to fly to London and demand answers, but he would have to settle for telling Tria and Serena on them and seeing the fallout from far away. 

The drive to the park that Aaron had mentioned took but fifteen minutes. Reed climbed out of the sunroof on the car and looked around. It was an ancient park, the magic that lived in it kept it from being destroyed by humans. Reed could almost see the magic that kept humans from even noticing that it was there. 

"This is where the first magic user who arrived on these shores from England died. In a little hovel that she adored. The area became sacred to the rest of us. Almost every single human magic user who comes here stops and adds their magic to it. We will be safe here from them, no matter their intentions."

"That's James, isn't it? The James who bought you that prostitute that I slipped into the dream of?" Reed asked as he crawled around on the ground around the edge of the area. It was big enough for approximately thirty people to stand without touching each other. 

"Yes. That's him." 

Reed felt Aaron moving closer to him. He waited for the touch that he knew was coming. Aaron settled on the ground behind him and stroked down Reed's tail. Reed turned to look at his mate. Aaron patted his chest and then laid down on the ground, in his suit. Reed dutifully climbed up Aaron's leg and settled on Aaron's chest to where when Aaron laid his head on his hands, he could look Reed in the eye. 

"You know I was sure that I had felt every single emotion of yours. Then today I felt a new one. Was that jealousy?"

"Yes." Reed wasn't going to lie about it. He huffed a little, and a puff of smoke came out of his snout. 

"Why?"

"You felt lust for him, I felt it, and it wasn't his emotion. I just...never thought that I would feel that from you and it not be directed at me."

"James and I fought hard in wars together, Reed. We fought hard, and we played hard. There was never anything other than what we called bloodlust. We fucked each other to remind ourselves that we were human as we killed and maimed in the name of whoever was right at that time or to remind ourselves that we were alive. It was never more than that."

"I know, but I wasn't expecting it. I know that you didn't expect to find him and I am positive that if you had known I was going to meet him, you would have said that you had fucked him before. I can't help how I feel, but I also won't take it out on him."

"I am thoroughly pissed that they are here. Before we leave here, I want to call Tria and Serena. I want to know what the hell is up with MI6 and sending them."

"They are Immortals." 

"Yes. Alec and I have crossed paths a few times in our long lives. The young one, Q he's new to life in all aspects. I can't tell if they are fucking or not though."

"They smell like it." Reed stretched and grew in size to where he could lay to the side of Aaron with his head on his chest and just settled there. Aaron's arm wrapped around him to trace nonsense patterns on his scales. 

Time lost meaning as they settled there like that. Reed tracked time by the breaths that he took and the ones that Aaron matched to his. He felt when the trio was getting close. Reed was moving before Aaron started to sit up. 

"That's..." Q trailed off, and he huffed and leaned against a tree along the edge. James and Alec stepped forward more. It was very evident that the two of them wanted to protect Q but Reed kind of figured that Q could take care of himself. 

Aaron pulled out his cell phone, and he dialed a number. Reed was watching Q and the other two but he knew the sound that Aaron's phone made with each key press and given the look of shock on Q's face, he could hear it or maybe even feel it. Aaron pressed the button to have it come over the speaker instead of the earphone. 

"Devonshire residence," a voice that Reed didn't know said. 

"I'd like to speak Judge Devonshire. Tell her it's Judge Hotchner." 

"Of course, My Lord," the woman said. 

"Aaron shut the phone. It's not going to do you any good," James said, and he was smirking. 

Reed kept his huff to himself.

"Aaron, why are you calling the business line?" Serena asked. 

"What is the stance of MI6 entering the DC area and finding a job at the school where I have sent all three of my children."

The smirk on James's face was wiped away. Alec's mouth opened up, and Q just sagged like he had expected it. 

"Buggering fucking hell. Is that where 006, 007, and the Quartermaster went?" Serena asked.

"Yes."

"We will fly out and personally escort them home. I'm sorry, Aaron. I thought that we had better control of MI6 than that. They are curious, and well. M is very set on no one telling her no for any reason." There was the sound of muffled talking, and Reed couldn't tell what was being said. "Actually, Tria is telling me that you can interrogate them however you want and do with 007 and 6 as you will but to leave the Quartermaster alone. We don't want him too damaged."

"Well, Reed has already attacked 007 and bit 006. It was quite entertaining. As to interrogation, James would like what I would do to him too much for it to be effective. I think that it won't take much to get what we want out of them. Expect them flying your way as soon as possible. We will dispatch them posthaste, though New Grove won't like that."

"Why don't we just keep them? Force them to stick with their covers until the end of the school year as punishment to M as well as them?" Reed asked. 

"It's like we raised him," Tria said. 

The color drained from all of three of the British men's faces. 

"That sounds good. I will meet with M and the head of MI5 as soon as possible to make sure that they don't do something this stupid again. And maybe it's time for England to know just who I am." The call ended, and Reed wasn't exactly upset about what was coming. 

"Who was that?" Alec asked.

"That was Tria Devonshire, and yes, she's exactly what you think she is," Aaron said. He stood up and dropped his phone to the ground. 

"My name is Spencer Reid," Reed said as he grew to the size that he felt most comfortable in. Roughly the back height of a horse. "I was raised by Tria and Serena after my egg hatched."

"High Dragon," Q said, and he looked like he was going to drop to his knees and possibly kiss the ground in front of Reed. That told Reed all he needed to know about what the Quartermaster knew of who was in control of Magic in England. Reed stared at Q and as he did he saw something that gave him a better explanation on who Q was and why he had knowledge that wasn't common, even over there. 

Reed moved forward, and Q did drop to his knees, but he didn't kiss the ground he just stared. Reed looked at his face. "Quintavius."

"Yes." Q swallowed and looked like he was going to pass out. 

"At least you are not an idiot," Reed huffed at the man. 

"Quintavius?" Alec and James asked at the same time. 

"Quintavius Holmes, youngest of the current Lady of the line of the Holmes's. The Holmes have been in control of the history of the High Dragons since we were first spawned. No wonder Tria didn't want you dead. You entered the land of a High Dragon with no cause to find out what was going on. You entered not only the area of a Judge but the main area of said Judge without telling them. I would be told to do better if I ate the three of you, but I'll have to settle for you three staying and teaching the children at the school."

James stepped up to Q and helped him stand up, putting himself between Reed and Q. 

"That's not going to help, James. What was your mission here?"

"M got word from another operative who is embedded in the Triad that something was going on in DC and that it involved children. I didn't..." James swallowed. He looked at Aaron with a little bit of shame on his face. "I didn't realize that you had children at the school."

"How trustworthy are the two?" Reed asked. 

"James and Alec will keep the knowledge of the kids to themselves and not tell M at all." Q sounded sure of himself on that. 

"The fourth High Dragon hatched, and Tria and Serena sent her to me because they couldn't control her. She has two mates."

James looked a little better at those words. "So not biological." Before James could even take a breath, he was on his ass with a dagger shoved right at his Adam's apple. 

"Jack is my biological child, and I would take threat against his two mates as a reason to end your entire magical line, Bond."

"So Jack is yours and Bri and Henry are his mates?"

"Henry is also Reed's Godson in magic," Aaron said as he looked at Q who had asked the question. "His parents bestowed that honor on Reed this past weekend. It was beautiful. Though it wasn't exactly a shock. If Henry has a favorite person besides his mate and his parents, it's Reed. Henry became Immortal on the night he met Reed. It's how we knew that somehow he was connected to Reed. Just wasn't exactly something we saw coming. The school has made sure to keep all of that hidden."

"So Henry is human, Jack is human, so Bri is the dragon?" Alec asked.

"Yes."

Q gasped, and Reed looked at him. 

"M thought it was all rubbish. I don't understand how someone could get that high into the hierarchy of British Secret Service and not understand magic."

The sound of a phone chiming rang around the clearing they were in, and Q pulled his phone out. 

"Miss Devonshire is already in a meeting with MI5," Q said. 

"Mycroft?" Reed asked.

"Yes."

"Good. Calmer heads will prevail when it comes to M. Now, tell me exactly what kind of magics you have done on the children."

"None. We were sent to observe, but as the computer system at New Grove is technomagic in its infancy, I was sent because that is my specialty." Q shoved his phone into his pocket. "I was sent to make sure that 006 and 7 had what they needed to get the job done. No one was expecting this."

"No one ever expects dragons," Aaron said. 

"No, they really don't," James said. 

"Go home," Aaron said. 

"Home home or the flat that M stuck us in after we tried to burn down the old one?" Alec asked.

"You and your fire, Trevelyan. Go to your run-down flat. You are going to be going on the no-fly list for the US with a caveat that it would be allowed if I agreed. And I will know if you try and conjure a circle to go home that way."

"You used to be more fun," James said. 

"I also didn't have the weight on my shoulders that I do now." Aaron reached out and laid a hand on Reed's shoulder bone, missing his wing so that he didn't hit it. 

"Why isn't he turning human?" Alec asked. 

"He was tortured and his wings shattered by dark magic. If he were to change, the pain of his arms shattering would drive him insane." 

"Really?" James asked as he stepped up to Reed. Reed growled and backed away from him. James held up his hands, but Reed didn't trust him. Aaron laid a calming hand on Reed's neck, and Reed stilled. 

"He doesn't like being touched, James so I would back off, or your ability to resurrect yourself might be challenged with Dragon fire."

"I'm just intrigued as I have never encountered something like that. I understand the magic behind it but are the bones really not healing?" James locked his eyes on Reed's wings. 

"Yes, it's been a while too. The time that the doctor thinks it's going to take keeps changing every visit."

"Hmm. When compared to the curse that you were given when you were about four hundred, better or worse?" 

Aaron stilled, he stopped breathing. Reed turned his head to look at him. Whatever James was talking about it shocked Aaron. Reed waited while Aaron thought about it.

"About the same."

"Good. Between Alec and I we might be able to break some of the hold that the dark magic has on his bones. It can't hurt to try."

"Reed? It's your body and your magic. This little area would be perfect to do it in because whatever magic is cast off the ground would absorb." Aaron stepped around Reed to stare him in the eye. "I trust him with my life as well as yours, even if he is an asshole."

Reed nodded his head a single time before looking around Aaron at James and at Alec. 

"I reserve the right to bite them though,"

"Hunker down here," James said pointing at the center of the clearing. Reed walked over to where he pointed and stretched out all the way when James motioned for him to do it. "We both need to be able to straddle you, one at the base of your wings and one at the top. Aaron and Q can be wherever you want them to be."

Reed shrunk down, and Aaron settled in at his head, rubbing at the scales there. Q stayed right in Reed's line of sight. 

The magic that the two Immortals was putting off was strange. It felt wild and in Alec's case like a raging inferno. Alec was a true Fire Lord, he was close to what Jack was going to be when he grew up. Reed shivered at the magic that enveloped his wings. It felt weird after so long of just Aaron's magic on him. Fire danced up and down his back, going to the tips of his wings and back up again. Reed dug his claws into the earth under him because it felt good. 

"Hold still," Alec said, and his Russian accent deepened to a level that spoke of his age. Alec was old, all of them except for Q were old. There was something inside of Q though that he could see that drew James and Alec to him. Reed wondered what Mycroft Holmes thought about the fact that his baby brother was taking up with two Immortal secret agents.

Reed felt the build of magic and the pull of it on the area around him. He felt the tug on his own magic that lay almost dormant in his wings. Fire danced along Reed's scales, and he dug his claws deeper into the earth. The chirping of the birds and the sound of the insects left the area. The only sound was the roar of the contained fire along Reed's wings and the breathing of the five who were in the clearing. Reed felt his magic trying to stop it, trying to not bend to the will of Alec but in the end, it lost. 

There was a sound that was not unlike an explosion and Reed knew nothing.

* * *

Aaron scooped up Reed with gentle hands as he looked at the two men who were on their asses and smoking. Their clothes were half burnt off, and even their hair was singed. Reed had protected Aaron, and strangely enough, Q from the backlash of Alec's magic breaking through the barrier of dark magic. 

"Well that could have gone better," Q said.

"No, it really couldn't have," Aaron said. Reed was small, one of the smallest forms that Aaron had ever seen him in but the twitch of his wings told Aaron that something had happened. Something good. Reed hadn't moved his wings in months. 

"That fucker that put that block on Reed's magic was insane and stupid," James muttered as he finally stood up. He brushed at his clothes and everywhere that he touched was cleaned but not repaired. 

"Why do you say that?" Aaron asked. 

"There is a reason that the bones were taking so long to heal. Many of the new magical doctors have probably never seen a curse like was placed on Reed. It was tied to the life force of the one who put it on him. As soon as the man died there was a curse placed on Reed however it didn't activate until later, the cause I have no clue. He gave over half of his magic, his core magic, not what he had on hand to lay that curse."

Aaron felt his heart break a little more at the damage that Sean had caused to his life. James was looking at him and must have saw something.

"Who was it?" James asked as he stepped up to Aaron. Aaron backed away before James could touch him. James raised his hands. "I wasn't going to touch your dragon or you, Aaron. Tell me what's going on?"

"It was Sean."

"Sean died many years ago," James said.

"He became twisted and used dark magic to stay alive and then he tried to take Reed from me and even little Bri. He was going to try and force a bond to make himself Immortal. Reed ended up killing him."

"I have no words," James said.

"There are none."

"We drove here, and I think that maybe you would let at least one of us drive you home," Q said. He stepped up to where he was close to James. 

"Yeah, James can drive and then you two follow in your car that way you can pick him up. If the kids see you, they might want to play." Aaron felt raw, even more raw than he had the day that Reed had been taken. 

"His bones are still magic resistant, but the magic is no longer stopping him from healing. He will start to heal like a normal human now," James offered. 

Aaron nodded. James reached out and clasped his shoulder, directing him to where the cars were. Aaron remembered little of the drive home, settled in the back of the vehicle with Reed in his lap. Reed felt better than he had in a long time and Aaron hated that he'd never asked for anyone else to come and look at him. There was no guarantee that anyone else would have been able to help though. James was gifted at curses and the breaking of them. 

Getting out of the car, Aaron smelled the tell-tale sign of someone on the block barbecuing even though it was January. There was the sound of laughter and screeching from the kids in the backyard, so Aaron was pretty sure it was his house. 

"Come on back and meet everyone," Aaron said looking at the trio. 

There was still a long road to go for Reed to be healed up, but at least that road had an end in sight, finally.

# The End

**Author's Note:**

> I write fanfiction for fun. It's a hobby and a stress relief. I refuse to stress over my writing. What you see is what you get. Errors, plot holes, and all. Thank you for reading my story! 
> 
> I can be found on MeWe (a FB replacement that's better) [here](https://mewe.com/i/beccaqueen1), join me there and we can discuss my fics and whatnot. My writing page for the moment is kind of dead in the water on a FB front as links are being banned for content. 
> 
> The Criminal Minds Reverse Bang sign-ups are open until June 30th! Please check it out [here](https://criminalmindsbangblog.wordpress.com/).


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